Altar of the Suffering God By Iokennoron McComber Description: A cavern behind a waterfall hold this barren alter dedicated to an ancient, gaunt deity The dogma, “Perseverance can overcome any suffering,” is carved upon the wall Lore: History, local, or religion A former god of bounty and indulgence suffers punishment for interacting too frequently with mortals The deity was forced into hiding and left to starve for his crimes (DC 15): What would be a perfect watering hole lies abandoned by even the bravest of animals in the area Now it stagnates, despite being fed by the nearby falls, and draws insects (DC 25): There is a small cave at the base of the falls that anybody with some sense avoids staying in for too long A local boy once ran away from his abusive parents and hid in the cave for days before the swarms chased him home (DC 30): A priest from a neighboring city once investigated the cave Legend claims he stayed there for days before succumbing to hunger, but recovered his wits after leaving Upon his return, the man felt nothing of the power he claimed was there before Prerequisite: The altar of the suffering god confers its special ability only on a living creature that breathes, eats, and sleeps Activation: A creature must meditate and fast for days in the cave without the aid of magic or other creatures During this time, the creature must succeed against at least Constitution checks to avoid nonlethal damage from starvation After days in the cave, a summon swarm spell harrasses the creature 1d4 times per day Treat this spell as being cast by a spellcaster of the creature’s level –3 Recharge: The altar functions for any creature that can survive its trial, so long as the creature does not aid or receive aid from other creatures within the cave Benefit: A creature that completes the Trial of the Suffering God gains the benefits of a ring of sustenance, a permanent stoneskin spell that refreshes at the beginning of each day, and immunity to poison This lasts for months Aura: Moderate abjuration Descruction: 10 lbs of food left to rot in the cave for at least days suppresses its benefit for months The rotted food can be harvested and used as the spell component to create up to 1d3 rings of sustenance No magic, short of a mage’s disjunction, miracle, or wish, can destroy the altar Value: 8,000 gp (6th) Carapace of the Greatest Thief Description: What looks like the ornate top half of a mediumsized turtle’s shell inexplicably floats just out of reach in a room lined with traps that would make the wisest of rogue’s reconsider trying for it Yet, from the scorch marks on the walls and the skeletons strewn about, it’s clearly something worth the risk Lore: Arcana, dungeoneering, or religion The shell is a wives’ tale told in thieves’ dens by liars who claim the god of tricks was looking out for them (DC 15): In the story, the god of tricks was once a mortal rogue who drew the ire of a tribe of barbarians by taking the innocence of their princess before her wedding day To escape them, he used a stolen scroll to change himself into a turtle with jewels embedded in its shell and played at being the chieftain’s pet until the old barbarian died in glorious battle the following year (DC 20): Even as a turtle, the rogue was capable enough to work his skill against the tribe, lulling them into complacancy with what they believed was the blessing of the gods for keeping him around Eventually, though, he grew bored and turned on them just in time to watch the chieftain battle a clearly superior enemy to the death (DC 25): After ascending to godhood, the rogue kept the shell around as a reminder of his mortal flaws, but his fancy in it soon waned as well He now sends the shell where he feels it will capture the most attention, hoping to find somebody who might keep him entertained for a time Prerequisite: Int 13, at least ranks in two of the following skills: Acrobatics, Bluff, Disable Device, Stealth, or Use Magic Device Activation: A creature must overcome no less than traps set around the shell, then touch it and hope it doesn’t disappear Recharge: While it remains in an area, any number of creatures can activate the shell For each attempting to so, roll 1d6 On a 1, the shell teleports away, as plane shift, before being touched Benefit: A creature that successfully touches the carapace of the greatest thief gains luck unimaginable, allowing it to reroll up to failed d20 rolls The creature can use these rerolls repeatedly if it wishes to so, or it can spread them out For each day the creature doesn’t perform some purposefully daring or otherwise entertaining act, there’s a cumulative 5% chance its remaining points disappear the next time it attempts to use them Aura: Strong illusion Descruction: If taken from its current location, the shell becomes a +1 adamantine heavy shield that all creatures are proficient with For a small creature, it counts as a tower shield instead If the gems are removed, or the shell would be sundered, it crumbles into lbs of fine powder worth half its value (or its full value if used to create a chanceborn convergence) Value: 15,500 gp (5th) Presence of Nature Description: A presence of nature is a specific area of lingering power where the greatest fey beings, rivaling the gods themselves, show the true extent of their abilities At the height of the war between order and The Chaos, the Fey Court was forced to join the fight directly to prevent the Overrealm’s destruction Some of these locations ripped reality open to expose shattered worlds Others collected the ambient magic that pervades the area even now and coalesces into a presence of nature 163